I've always thought that the Mac mini would be one of the first Intel systems because it is geared towards switchers. Most switchers can get by with Safari, Mail and iLife. You know those applications have already been ported for Intel. I doubt pro users that work with advance applications will want to run in emulation._________________http://www.hawaiimacnuts.org

I have a feeling Apple is going to do away the Mac mini having a dedicated video.

There's no way, not the way they use OpenGL everywhere. They even have custom Apple-only openGL extensions on both the Radeon and nvidia platforms. Breaking in a new GPU that has such limited openGL support compared to the Radeon would be insanely hard. Harder than porting Mac OS X to the Pentium in the first place.

I have a feeling Apple is going to do away the Mac mini having a dedicated video.

There's no way, not the way they use OpenGL everywhere. They even have custom Apple-only openGL extensions on both the Radeon and nvidia platforms. Breaking in a new GPU that has such limited openGL support compared to the Radeon would be insanely hard. Harder than porting Mac OS X to the Pentium in the first place.

First off, I hope you're right! Do you know what these custom Apple-only openGL extensions are for? Are you saying these openGL extensions can't be ported to Intel? I was looking at this more from a cost cutting view. The Pentium M is going to be more expensive for Apple compared to the G4. Therefore, cuts may come in the video department.

I'd hope the video subsystem would only get better ! Anyway what might a mactel mini mean for someone who is about to take the plunge (me) I rely on quite a few non mainstream programs (Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird, Cyberduck ((a FTP client)) ClamXav, OpenOfficeOrg etc.) that may not be ported right away, should I get a current mini or wait for a mactel ?_________________Rob (mini one day) Fruth
http://www.rfruth.net
1981 Raleigh for errands & fun
1997 Trek 2300 for real fun !
2000 Civic hatchback

Yonah chips are pretty expensive. They might go with the single core Yonah in the Mac mini and iBook. The dual core in the PowerBook and iMac. Apple, please don't look at anything at the bottom of this list. <cough> Celerons </cough>

First off, I hope you're right! Do you know what these custom Apple-only openGL extensions are for?

No, and it doesn't matter. I've run OpenGL software on those Intel chipsets and they make even the wimpy OpenGL in the Mac Mini look good. They may be competent enough cards in DirectX, but they're NOT designed for OpenGL.

Quote:

Are you saying these openGL extensions can't be ported to Intel?

They would have to be ported to the Intel chipset *BY* Intel. This isn't an x86 vs PPC difference, OpenGL is a whole programmable graphics system that runs on the video card.

Quote:

cuts may come in the video department.

There's no point cutting the Mac Mini's video any more, it's already like a $20 part... you can buy whole PCI cards with the Radeon 9200 chipset and 4x the VRAM on them for around $40, retail boxed with manual, CD, ...

No, and it doesn't matter. I've run OpenGL software on those Intel chipsets and they make even the wimpy OpenGL in the Mac Mini look good. They may be competent enough cards in DirectX, but they're NOT designed for OpenGL.

I thought you might be talking about these. I didn't know that Apple used anything special. I always thought OpenGL was a standard API. Thanks for the clarification! I'm far from a graphics expert.

Wow, this would be pretty surprising if this got announced in January.. What are the chances that a very stable version of Tiger will be released in time? What about apps? Will there be much available for purchase. I feel pretty good about my 2 week old updated 1.5GHZ Mini.. I am hoping to keep it at least 18-24 months before going macintel (most likely a powerbook).

Also, I am not convinced on the chipset.. They will need something that is low voltage, inexpensive, and offers an upgrade from the current 1.5GHZ model. I would think nothing less than 1.8-2GHZ, but that could be expensive...._________________Vote for me, and your wildest dreams will come true.. - Pedro Sanchez, "Napoleon Dynamite"

What are the chances that a very stable version of Tiger will be released in time?

According to a recent /. story, Tiger on x86 is now tracking Tiger on PPC.

It's still not going to be ready in January. Here's a what if. What if Apple releases some soft of Digital Hub device that runs a more robust version of Front Row with PVR functionality? They could pop an Intel chip in there and get off the ground with their Intel campaign. This way they don't have to worry about OS X or third party applications.